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Chamizal National Memorial

The Chamizal National Memorial is a very special kind of park. The memorial sits on 55 acres and is part of an El Paso City Park. It offers a rare bit of nature here, in one of the state’s poorest neighborhoods.

The park is located on land that once belonged to Mexico. It was the focus of a century-long border dispute that began when the Rio Grande River changed its course.

“Our society has all kinds of challenges,” said Superintendent Gus Sanchez. ” But we really are in a world where you can go from a little neighborhood on the border and end up seeing amazing places and doing things you never imagined you would do. I think that’s when I experienced in my life and I’m hoping that we can do the same for a lot of the children here in El Paso.”

In 1963, a treaty to resolve the border dispute ended in a standoff. Three years later, this park was born as a monument to the friendship between Mexico and the United States. A monument to the friendship between the two nations and the culture we share.

“One of the unusual things about this park is that we are a historic site, but we try to use the venue of the arts to tell that story,” Sanchez said.